But good things also happened in threes. I had so many good things happening around me and to me, I wasn’t quite sure where to start counting. I’d started teaching at Sullivan’s Island Elementary School eight months earlier, and I loved it. Because of that and a few other details, I couldn’t go to Italy with Maureen, but Ted promised to take me there someday.

“When’s the baby coming?” Tyler asked.

“Any day now,” I said.

Last fall, Ted gave me a diamond ring. It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t too small, either. We got married as soon as we could, right after Suzanne and Momma. Everyone knew we would run to the altar because our pants were on fire. We had a small ceremony at Stella Maris Church. Monsignor Ben Michaels performed the ceremony and Lynn Bagnal played the organ. Leslie was a maid of honor and, in a surprise choice, Ted asked Suzanne to be his best man. They had become very close. He had taken to calling her Suz, which Suzanne said suited her better anyway. It was a gender-neutral name. So first Suz walked me up the aisle to give me away and then she stood by Ted.

My friends from Publix and school came and, of course, friends of Ted’s, lots of folks from the township office and the police force, our neighbors, Maureen, her husband and son, and Archie and his boys. Archie and his boys bought us a remote-controlled toy Maserati as a wedding gift and I thought it was really sweet. Of course, Mark and Darlene were there, too. Afterward, we had a small reception at home with wedding cake from Publix, finger sandwiches, and champagne. It was simple but beautiful, and exactly what we wanted.

My garden was a botanical wonder that season, with so many gorgeous roses and dahlias, still in bloom, as though they were staying in bloom, waiting for my wedding to happen. They filled every container we owned, and I even made my own bouquet. I decorated my beehives and the fence around them with yards and yards of white tulle and bouquets of herbs. And of course, I got a sense that the bees were pleased for me. I really did.

Don’t you know that when we announced we were going on a short honeymoon to Bermuda, Hunter wanted to come.

“Aren’t we related yet?” he asked with those gorgeous eyes of his.

“You are such a little charmer,” I said and tousled his hair.

The boys had survived the reign and wrath of Sharon and appeared to be unscathed.

“I’ll take you to Bermuda this summer if you have a good year in school. And Tyler, too, of course,” Archie said.

Leslie shot Archie a hairy eyeball.

“And you, too!” he said. “Of course!”